Book of the Week

The Bonfire of the Vanities by Tom Wolfe
Recommended by Nicholas Stanger

The novel follows the story of Wall Street banker Sherman McCoy (known to himself as a 'Master of the Universe') and his lover Maria with whom he is having an affair.
In the beginning of the story, Sherman and Maria are in Sherman’s car with Maria driving. They take a wrong turn off the motorway and go down into the Bronx near the projects. As they try to get back onto the highway, they are approached by two young black men. Panicked, Maria reverses and knocks down one of the young men, and then she and Sherman flee the crime scene and do not report it to the police. Many days of paranoia follow, and the situation escalates when the initially injured victim dies. Maria has long since fled the country to Italy to try and escape justice, therefore Sherman is arrested for the crime, and doesn’t want to admit he was with another woman that night as his wife is unaware of the affair.

What follows are a series of events which give the incident a lot of publicity, making Sherman McCoy the centre of one of the biggest political, racial, and class tensions that New York has seen. After Sherman’s arrest, the stories of three other characters are drawn in. Firstly that of Larry Kramer, a young defense lawyer who takes up Sherman’s case. We see through his eyes at points of the novel and find that he thinks Sherman is helpless and weak, but he is still motivated to help him so that he can impress one of the members of the jury, Shelly Thomas, whom he has his eye on. Secondly, that of Peter Fallow, a journalist from England who likes to spend more time drinking than working: however, when he learns about this case he rushes all over town to investigate so that he can get his big break. Finally, that of Reverend Bacon, a priest who works in the Bronx. After hearing about the case he contacts Abe Weiss, the Bronx district attorney, and talks about how Sherman should be punished heavily and also about how he can get more power in the Bronx community.

The areas I enjoyed the most were the parts which included Larry Kramer and Peter Fallow. At one particular moment, when Sherman is being taken into the court, Peter Fallow is standing around drunk, and remarks on the appearance of Larry Kramer and gives his opinion on him. Later the perspective switches and Kramer thinks to himself afterwards about the drunk news reporter waiting by the courthouse. It is funny as a reader to know both of these characters in depth and to have them cross paths without them knowing each other. It shows what a broad view of New York that Wolfe provides us with - diving into every class and race.

Tom Wolfe’s style is very precise. He tells every fact that is known to each character in each scene, and gives every detail from their eyes, which helps us unlock information about their personality. He changes pace very often to create tension and captivate the reader. The most intelligent thing he does is changing the perspective of the story. He goes into the mind and looks out of the eyes of every single main character in the story at least once, and it makes for a very interesting read, especially in a story about tensions and conflicting opinions. It is a very long book but there is not one boring moment; it is packed full of vibrant sensations of life in New York. One thing I thought he could have improved is more character development in Peter Fallow and Larry Kramer, and a resolution to their stories not just a resolution to Sherman’s. Other than that I wouldn’t have changed anything else, as I find that the rest of the story was written perfectly.

All in all, this story is a masterful insight into the socio-economic situation in New York and the fragility of racial tensions. I would definitely recommend this book to all more advanced readers.